While new media and social networking sites have been useful tools in encouraging young people to register to vote, they may have also had a hand, among other things, in their lack of interest in leaving the comfort of their homes for the queues at the polling stations.
Facebook and Twitter are largely credited with mobilising protesters in their quest to oust dictators in Tunisia and Egypt, but it seems they may also work against the democratic gains if many young people remain glued to their computers and refuse to face inclement weather to register and vote. The inconvenience of standing in a queue is cited by an increasing number of young people as the main reason for staying away.
DA youth spokeswoman Mbali Ntuli said all was not lost in the battle to interest young people in politics in general and voting specifically. Ntuli commended the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) for attracting young people to register but said, in light of the discussion young people were having on Facebook and Twitter, more work needed to be done to get maximum participation.
“The IEC has done a good job in its campaign to target young people to register. Their efforts were well worth the future of democracy in our country. Young people have discussed the issue on Facebook and Twitter, but some do little about it,” said Ntuli.
“It’s unfortunate that some young people have been spoilt by the age we live in where we have an option of doing everything online, but it only takes about five minutes to register and we encourage young people to do it when it opens again.”
With the next registration weekend on March 5 and 6, the IEC is expecting more young people to turn out at registration venues.
In a population of about 49 million people, more than 23 million are now on the voters roll. Last weekend, about 653 000 young people under the age of 30 either registered or re-registered to vote in the local government elections.
Even though this was a significant improvement from the last local government elections in 2006, some young people say this number would be higher if voting was done online, as is almost everything else.
“The number of people who register to vote would be doubled if we had a technologically advanced system of doing it. We are not going to leave the comfort of our homes to vote, especially when there is minimal improvement in the governance of our country,” said junior accountant Slindile Mlambo, 22.
Although the power of social and new media is evident, it is but one of the reasons young people are not excited about the future of their country and as a result not eager to vote, let alone register.
Mnikelo Ndabankulu, spokesman for the Shack Dwellers Movement, says the number of young people from Clare Estate, Durban, who are interested in registering has gone down since the last local elections.
“We have seen no improvement since 1994. The conditions we live in are still the same, they are terrible,” he said. “We do not have the most basic things like electricity. I do not even want to mention the decline in jobs because young people here are still sitting under the trees… waiting on the promises that were made in campaigning in the last elections,” added Ndabankulu.
Angela Lekganyane, 27, an estate agent in Randburg, said she had not registered to vote because community leaders did not make themselves visible until it was time for elections.
“I did not know the counsellor until recently. Community leaders must make themselves known and be active from the time they are appointed so that come election time, we know who they are and what they have done,” said Lekganyane.
According to the IEC, youth participation in voting has improved significantly.
National Youth Development Agency chairman Andile Lungisa hailed the progress as proof that young people were active in democracy.
But he warned against a culture of “instant gratification”, saying: “
If we allow this culture of doing everything on our couches, we will have a generation wiped out by ignorance and idleness, so young people must get up and grab the opportunity to vote.” - Sunday Independent